Division II Men

Lawson Named New Head Coach at Wingate

from press release

WINGATE, N.C. - Wingate University vice-president and
director of athletics Steve Poston announces the appointment of
Michael Lawson as head men's lacrosse coach. Lawson is the third
coach in Wingate men's lacrosse history. The Bulldog family will
meet Michael Lawson at a 4 p.m. Monday, Dec. 3 press conference in
LaVerne Banquet Hall on the Wingate campus. The Wingate University
Sports Network will provide a free video stream.

Most recently, Lawson was the founder of the men's lacrosse
program at Mount Olive College. He spent 10 months at the
Conference Carolinas institution, providing leadership,
organization and supervision for all aspects of the men's lacrosse
program. Lawson successfully recruited 40 student-athletes from all
over the world.

Lawson spent seven seasons as the head coach at St. Andrews
University. He was named the 2007 Conference Carolinas men's
lacrosse Coach of the Year, during the first year the conference
sponsored the sport. The Knights compiled a 12-5 overall and earned
a second-place finish in the conference standings with a 4-1 mark.
In addition, St. Andrews was the conference tournament runners
up.

"I'm pleased to welcome Michael Lawson to the Wingate family,"
Poston says. "He has had a distinguished head coaching career which
has produced success on the field and in the classroom. We are
convinced he is the right person to lead the Bulldog men's lacrosse
program to national prominence."

Under Lawson's guidance, St. Andrews placed at least three
players on the All-Conference Carolinas team each year, including
the Co-Player of the Year in 2007 and the Freshman of the Year in
2008. Lawson helped improve the team's cumulative GPA from a 2.2 to
a 3.0. His teams participated in multiple community service
initiatives, including Habitat for Humanity, Highland Games,
socials with a local retirement community and campus beautification
projects.

"I am very excited to be a part of the Wingate family," Lawson
says. "Thanks to (Wingate president) Dr. Jerry McGee, Mr. Poston
and the search committee for this opportunity. Wingate lacrosse is
primed for great things...everyone at Wingate is behind us and very
committed to the growth and success of this program."

Prior to his time at St. Andrews, Lawson was the head coach at
Howard Community College in Columbia, Md. Lawson was named the
NJCCA Region XX Coach of the Year while at Howard CC. Lawson
received his BBA degree in business management at Marymount (Va.)
University and his master's degree in instructional systems design
at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County.

Men's lacrosse is one of four new South Atlantic Conference
sports on the league's 2013-14 horizons. "Coach Lawson's experience
and success will be vital as we prepare to enter the
highly-competitive SAC men's lacrosse league in 2013-14," Poston
says.